Profile: marrying two broker philosophies

by
MBN |
30 Jun 2016

Most brokers are either rate-driven or service-driven, but this one young gun proves you can be both.

“I’ve got two feet in both camps,” D’Arcy Henneberry, partner and senior mortgage planner with Verico MortgagePal, told MortgageBrokerNews.ca. “The clients deserve to get the best rates in the market while understanding the market.”

But when speaking to him, you get the sense it’s the service providing that Henneberry truly enjoys about his job.

“I make a point, in every conversation with clients, to provide an itinerary we’ll walk through during the conversation so that they understand what they’re looking for and manage their concerns,” he said. “I give them a bit of a mortgage crash course so they can fully understand the market; understand the different kinds of lenders that exist in the market, the different ways lenders register interest, the different types of products, the different ways penalty structures operate – whether it’s variable rate, a full-featured fixed rate, or a limited feature that has a higher penalty.”

Henneberry does this, he says, so that the client can fully understand the market and the options available to them.

He got his start on the banking side before transitioning to the broker channel, where he joined his brother Jason in running MortgagePal.

“I chose to become a broker for a number of reasons. Before I did, my brother and had always wanted to build a company together and just do something large together,” Henneberry said. “We have a phenomenal relationship and I hold him in high regard; being a part of something together and building something together was something that was very important to us.

“I decided to stay with the bank for a while, continue to build my skillset, my relationship management skills and when an opportunity became available, Jason and I decided to get together.”

Like all bankers-turned-brokers, Henneberry had his reasons for making the transition.

“One of the reasons I left the banking world was because I felt my hands were tied in what I was allowed to discuss with my clients,” he said. “I was told I would not be able to advise my clients on advanced [mortgage] strategies, so I felt that was rather unfair to the client. And, also, only having the one set of products available for my clients, I felt that I wasn’t able to do the best service for my clients.”

And that’s where he’s been for the last few years, helping the B.C.-based brokerage grow.

“I didn’t realize it before becoming a mortgage broker, but I love it,” Henneberry said. “I’ve found my passion; part of my passion is in education [and] I enjoy educating my clients over the phone or in person and seeing them engaged and wanting to understand the different products that exist.”